Mystikal's Newest "Hit"

“Hear that, Helen? He’s tearing it up, that fella. I’d love to get my hands on those acapellas.” About 45 seconds into “Hit It” Mystikal takes on the voice of an older white woman who is watching him perform the song, which is a stunningly good update of vintage James Brown funk. He’s catching feelings, riding the speedy beat, virtually speaking in tongues. He’s in the song and then outside it, calling out instructions to the band — which includes the New Orleans musician Trombone Shorty, according to the Twitter feed of DJ Don Juan, who produced the song with KLC — and talking about all the instruments he’s in charge of. His rasp is intact from his mid-1990s heyday, and his energy is stratospheric. The song is a leak; it may or may not appear on his coming album on Cash Money, his first in more than a decade, a span that included time in jail.

Whatever happens, though, “Hit It” — or “Hit Me,” depending on whose Twitter feed you believe — is either a late contender for best song of 2012, an early contender for best song of 2013 or proof that time travel to and from 1968 is possible and happening right before our ears.

The last time we saw Mystikal in New Orleans was his 2012 Jazz Fest set, where the mid-afternoon sun on the Congo Square seemed to sap his energy, so much so that he had to sit down and catch his breath a few times. Because of that memory, it's great to hear him at his high impact finest. One thing I'd add to Caramanica's appraisal of "Hit Me" is that Mystikal himself is funky on this track. His vocals are so staccato and syncopated that you can dance to them; the groove behind him only revs things up.

Lil Wayne has leaked another track from his upcoming I Am Not a Human Being II, "I Ain't Nervous" featuring Boo. Weezy's too reliable a hitmaker for the song to suck, but you've heard his cover this ground before, just with a different melody and hook. Not even talking dirty seems to inspire him at this point. I'm nostalgic for the Toxic Twins days of Aerosmith when they actually rocked, and I'm getting that way for Weezy's syrup days as well.